If you are suffering from varicose veins, your doctor may have suggested having varicose veins surgery to remove them. Knowing what types of surgical treatments are available will give you a better idea on if this option is for you, and what you can expect.
Varicose veins usually affect the lower legs and sometimes as high up as the thigh. This is caused by a weakness in the vein walls, or with the valves throughout the vein.
Valves hold the blood in place as the muscles of the leg push more blood back up towards the heart. If the valves are faulty, the blood can rush back down through the vein causing the large, ugly bulging of varicose veins.
The most common surgical procedure to remove varicose veins is called ligation and stripping.
In this procedure, the surgeon will make a small cut in the groin area. The bad valve will then be tied off to prevent blood from running through it, and then the varicose vein will be removed through a smaller cut in the lower part of your leg.
This procedure usually takes about 30 minutes to an hour depending on how bad the vein is affected or if both legs need to be treated. If the varicose vein is extremely bad, incisions will be made every few inches and the vein will be removed little by little.
If this surgery does not sound like something you want to do right away, there are alternative procedures that are less invasive and may control the problem.
For temporary varicose veins, such as those that occur from pregnancy or after a surgical procedure, your doctor may recommend you wear compression stockings. These stockings have maximum pressure at the ankle area and apply less pressure the further up the leg they go. Sometimes this is the first treatment they will prescribe and will see if it works for you.
Another option is an endovenous laser treatment. In this procedure, light energy is used to destroy the wall of the vein. This is another great non-invasive option and only requires a general anesthesia.
Lastly, Sclerotherapy can be used to “kill off” the varicose vein. In this process, a saline solution is injected into the affected vein causing the walls of the vein to stick together. Over a period of time, the vein will become scar tissue and be dissolved back into the body.
All of these procedures have been proven to control varicose veins, although some may need to be repeated over a period of time to get the full effects.
Before you decide to have your varicose veins surgically removed, ask your doctor about the more non-invasive procedures first.